Portugal has said once again that it wants to be included in China’s visa-free travel scheme and has communicated this request to the Chinese authorities.
Reiterating the country’s aspirations, the Minister of Economy of Portugal, Pedro Reis, said for Lusa that the country has signalled to China that it wants to become part of the list of countries whose citizens are not required to obtain a visa to enter China, SchengenVisaInfo reports.
Portugal has signalled this matter, that we would very much like to be included in the group of countries [that have visa exemption].
Minister Reis further stressed that a visa-free travel agreement with China would have a positive impact not only on travel and tourism but also on the economic cooperation between the two countries.
We found it [visa exemption] to be a beautiful instrument, very pragmatic, very adjusted to the pace of economic cooperation that we want to promote here.
Portugal Has Already Sought Clarity From China for Not Being Included in the Scheme
Portugal sought clarity from China earlier in March of this year for not being included in the visa-free scheme.
The Portuguese Ambassador to China, Paulo Jorge Pereira Nascimento, said that he did not understand the reason behind China’s decision not to permit visa-free travel for Portuguese nationals.
The same noted that Portugal does not believe that China wanted to send a message to the country by not including it in the visa-free travel scheme.
However, he said that the authorities wanted to know what pushed the Chinese authorities to exclude Portugal so that the country could start working on the matter and strengthen its relationship with China.
On the other hand, the Chinese authorities said that they are open to negotiations with Portugal in relation to their bilateral relations, but they did not mention the issue at hand and did not make a statement on the exclusion of Portugal from the scheme.
China Just Recently Started Permitting Visa-Free Entry for 11 EU Countries’ Nationals
China just recently decided to drop the visa requirement for 11 EU countries in an attempt to promote tourism to the country.
In December 2023, China dropped the visa requirement for nationals of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain.
Fast forward to March of this year, China decided also to permit visa-free entry for passport holders of Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg.
Nationals of these 11 EU countries can enter China without the need to obtain a visa for stays of up to 15 days for tourism, business, visit, and transit purposes. Those who plan on entering the country for other reasons need to obtain a visa.
